No more typing reviews! Try our Samantha, our new voice AI agent.

Cisco Enterprise Routers vs MikroTik Cloud Router Switch comparison

Why PeerSpot?
 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jun 29, 2025

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Categories and Ranking

Cisco Enterprise Routers
Ranking in Routers
1st
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.0
Number of Reviews
118
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
MikroTik Cloud Router Switch
Ranking in Routers
4th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.3
Number of Reviews
25
Ranking in other categories
Ethernet Switches (16th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of November 2026, in the Routers category, the mindshare of Cisco Enterprise Routers is 16.7%, down from 17.9% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of MikroTik Cloud Router Switch is 7.7%, up from 7.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Routers Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Cisco Enterprise Routers16.7%
MikroTik Cloud Router Switch7.7%
Other75.6%
Routers
 

Featured Reviews

Muhammad IrfanGhauri - PeerSpot reviewer
Head of Solutions at Comtech Associate
Enterprise routing has delivered advanced security integration and supported AI data centers
The licensing part of Cisco Enterprise Routers is a bit tricky nowadays. With DNA, they have introduced DNA licensing. If they make it more simplistic with respect to customer understanding, I think it would be a good selling point for them. The licensing model could be a bit too high or a bit too complex. They need to make it simplified. It would be good for their business. With respect to enterprise routing, I would like to see additional features in the future to make it closer to a ten. Previously, Cisco has integrated many technologies into their router and multiple security features. However, since they have created a separate firewall product line, Firepower, I still want them to integrate more security features into their enterprise-grade router as well. Content filtering, application control, and website filtering are features that should be integrated into the router. They have multiple options, so with respect to technology, I am expecting that they integrate security more and Voice over IP features more easily into the router. For the customer, this makes their life easier in the sense that a single box can give them multiple solutions. I think they are already providing 5G interfaces, and there are options available.
Andriejus Artamonovas - PeerSpot reviewer
IT Specialist at a outsourcing company with 501-1,000 employees
Has supported deeper configuration through traffic mirroring and advanced VLAN setup
The main reason why MikroTik Cloud Router Switch is usually chosen is its raw performance to price ratio. In comparison to UniFi switches, MikroTik Cloud Router Switch can mirror all ports for traffic inspection for further traffic analysis, which UniFi cannot do. VLANs in MikroTik Cloud Router Switch are always useful. The way MikroTik implements VLAN-aware switching at the bridge level is hidden in the configuration. Making CRS work as a simple VLAN-aware switch requires deeper configuration, which is not intuitive. VLANs support individual interfaces not part of the bridge, allowing for double VLANing. You can create a VLAN interface in the interfaces context and also create a bridge interface, add physical ports, create VLANs for that bridge interface, and assign tagged and untagged ports and VLANs. Load balancing is one of the key components. The feature itself is quite efficient and works reliably on MikroTik Cloud Router Switch. The very basic setup is one of my favorites because they have their protocol where I can connect through the MAC address right on Layer 2, and I don't lose connectivity to the switch if I mess up with bridging or IP addressing.

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"The most valuable feature of the solution stems from the fact that the product's overall look and feel is good, making it a user-friendly tool."
"The valuable feature is CLI."
"Cisco is an excellent and very comprehensive product, and we have no issues with that."
"The solution offers very good networking capabilities, the stability is excellent, the consistency of the configuration has been very good, and the performance of the devices is very reliable."
"Cisco is a great product."
"It's a very helpful machine and has helped me increase my performance in the network."
"Using Cisco is the way to go. The peace of mind you get from having a solution that's reliable is invaluable."
"The most valuable feature of Cisco Enterprise Routers is that they are robust and resilient."
"We value the solution's price, and it can do almost anything you need regarding routing, so it's a well-rounded solution for routing, especially for network routing."
"I like that it's quite flexible and addresses different issues. It's quite easy to use, and the pricing is great. We find them to be very capable switches."
"Familiar RouterOS support, port isolation, flexible VLAN handling (tagging, untagging, rewriting, etc.)."
"This product is easy to configure."
"The initial setup is easy."
"The tool has impacted our company's network costs and productivity in a perfect manner and percentage-wise, I can say it is 120 percent."
"The most valuable feature is that it has better throughput than its competitors."
"A valuable aspect is its user-friendly configuration, making it accessible even for individuals with basic technical knowledge."
 

Cons

"Many things about this solution are problematic including setup, configuration, performance, upgrades and support."
"There have been multiple issues when updating iOS to Cisco routers."
"Cisco has a lot of problems with the graphical interfaces used for management."
"They need to improve cost efficiency."
"Cost is very expensive, it needs to be reviewed for affordability by SMEs."
"I think Cisco could make the initial configuration and licensing a little simpler."
"The license of Cisco Enterprise Routers is too expensive compared to other solutions. As we try to increase the bandwidth, it gets even more expensive."
"Cisco is not granular if we compare it to Juniper."
"Simplifying the documentation would be a good idea."
"While some customers use MikroTik Cloud Router Switch as a firewall, it's not at an industry-level, though the basic features are adequate for many users who prefer it over purchasing other reputed firewall solutions."
"Proper LACP support, more software support for hardware capabilities, true wirespeed Layer 3 routing."
"The area for improvement is security. MikroTik is mostly used by medium and small businesses, so the security is not as robust as Cisco."
"There has to be more development in the OS. It's complex for this switch as compared to others like Cisco. For NetGear and Cisco, it's easy to adapt the VLAN concept but it should be simplified for MikroTik."
"It would be even better with a centralized management platform."
"MikroTik Cloud Router Switch needs improvement in the area of security, although the recent models are addressing this."
"MikroTik has a three to five year maximum lifespan."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"We are on a three-year license and since we use the solution in an educational institute it is priced reasonably."
"Normally, we pay for the licenses upfront. I think it's mostly just a perpetual, once-off license."
"Cisco routers are an expensive product."
"The price of Cisco Enterprise Routers is good for the service that you get."
"There is no licensing cost."
"The licensing fee is okay and matches industry standards, which is the benchmark."
"It is quite costly for the same feature as compared to Huawei and Juniper. I rate the pricing an eight out of ten."
"Cisco is mid-tier in terms of pricing and quite affordable by most enterprises."
"This product has a one-time cost and there is no licensing fee."
"The price of the solution is fair and there is a one-time license purchase only."
"I believe the price of the tool is high, but it is okay for the services we get from it."
"In Pakistan, if you buy this cloud router, it's approximately $700 for the device."
"I consider it to be a cost-effective solution."
"The licensing for MikroTik is great. It's easy to enter, especially for small businesses. Their model is great."
"The price is competitive."
"They came with the licensing when we purchased them."
report
Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Routers solutions are best for your needs.
920,929 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Outsourcing Company
13%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Healthcare Company
8%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Comms Service Provider
12%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Educational Organization
9%
Outsourcing Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business51
Midsize Enterprise24
Large Enterprise46
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business19
Midsize Enterprise5
Large Enterprise2
 

Questions from the Community

How do Cisco Enterprise routers compare with Mikrotik routers and switches?
Cisco Enterprise Routers are very stable and easy to use. They offer a very solid performance and are very secure. They also have a very good, long lifespan. We feel the command configuration is ve...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cisco Enterprise Routers?
In terms of licensing, I think it is straightforward. I do not see any issues with licensing for a specific feature, support, or anything else.
What needs improvement with Cisco Enterprise Routers?
Looking at the product portfolio, most features are covered. There are different types of interfaces available, whether Ethernet Gigabit or 10 Gigabit, along with various interface modules and diff...
What needs improvement with MikroTik Cloud Router Switch?
It can be difficult to identify key functions for MikroTik Cloud Router Switch. I experience functionality limitations, particularly when trying to find specific features. It would be beneficial to...
What is your primary use case for MikroTik Cloud Router Switch?
I mostly work with network equipment now, focusing mainly on routers. I work with FortiGates and MikroTik routers. When referring to FortiGate routers, I mean the firewalls, but not the enterprise-...
 

Also Known As

No data available
MikroTik CRS Series
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Aegean Motorway, Boingo, Chartwell School, Children's Hospital of Orange County , Department of Justice, Explorer Pipeline, Linz AG, National Rugby League, New South Wales Rural Fire Service, Telecom Italia, Transwestern
Information Not Available
Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco Enterprise Routers vs. MikroTik Cloud Router Switch and other solutions. Updated: November 2026.
920,929 professionals have used our research since 2012.